And the award for Best US Airline Loyalty Program goes to …

November 11, 2023

TPG Award winners

by Brian Kelly

This week was the annual TPG Awards, and we celebrated with a huge party Monday night in New York City with travel industry executives and influencers.

For me, this isn’t about just giving out awards, but showcasing the work that The Points Guy and its partners are doing. One of the highlights was awarding Make-A-Wish Foundation with an Impact Award and World Central Kitchen with a Hero Award; TPG made $20,000 donations to each to help further the work of both organizations.

We also highlighted Jeff Jenkins (@chubbydiaries on Instagram) as Travel Influencer of the Year. He’s been a friend of mine for years, and he hosts National Geographic’s new show “Never Say Never,” which embraces body positivity in travel.

The Next Gen Influencer of the Year award went to Vivan Tu (@your.richbff on Instagram) for teaching financial literacy in a fun and relatable way.

Overall, it was a really fun night and I think our readers and editors chose well. There were some changes from last year on the biggest awards of the night — especially for Best U.S. Airline Loyalty Program, which went to Delta Air Lines last year. This year, the people have spoken and American Airlines’ AAdvantage program won.

As Delta has leaned into increasing spending requirements for status, American AAdvantage has held steady with its Loyalty Points system that allows you to earn progress toward elite status. You can earn 1 Loyalty Point per dollar spent on flights operated by American and its Oneworld alliance partners. Travelers can also earn Loyalty Points by using the AAdvantage shopping portal, dining program, credit cards and more.

The award for Best Business Class went to Qatar Airways — its Qsuite product is innovative and stands the test of time. The Emirates Game Changer first-class suite won for Best First Class. And while I agree it’s the best first-class suite, as I’ve mentioned before, I think Emirates could do a lot more for its first-class passengers in terms of lounges and ground experience. Rounding out the airline categories, the award for Best Premium Economy Class went to Emirates and the award for Best Economy Class (U.S. Only) went to JetBlue.

But while some things change, others have stayed the same. In fact, the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card has won the award for Best Travel Rewards Credit Card six years in a row (though the category was called best mid-tier credit card for a while). It’s the only credit card that has held its spot since the TPG Awards began.

With its low $95 annual fee, built-in travel protections, and ability to earn 3 valuable Ultimate Rewards points per dollar charged on dining and select streaming services, 2 points per dollar on travel (not booked in the Chase travel portal) and 1 point per dollar on most other charges, it’s easy to see what it’s a fan favorite.

You can read about each of the winners and view the full list here.

Also, yesterday I was on the “Live with Kelly and Mark” show talking about family and budget travel as well as some cool new destinations. Check it out.

Have a great weekend,

BK

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Photo Credit: ZACH HETRICK FOR THE POINTS GUY.

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